Medal of Honor recipient ‘Mighty Thor’ spoke to packed house at The Pritzker
Monday, November 30, 2009 at 8:38AM 
Petty Officer Michael E. Thornton, a Navy Seal, spoke at The Pritzker Military Library about actions that led to his receiving the Medal of Honor. [Photo by Chris N. Seger; used with permission of Mishalov.com]**A reader named Dennis says the uniform looks like the rank is lieutenant. We used the rank from the citation and it was listed as Petty Officer. We thank our reader for his comments.Ask someone what their idea of a hero is and the answer could be anything from athletes to politicians. Last week, however, I had the honor of meeting a real hero at a reception and interview with Medal of Honor recipient Michael Thornton at Chicago's Pritzker Military Library. Thornton's actions in October, 1972 marked the last time a recipient of the medal would survive his or her exploits; all actions since have been awarded posthumously.
Thornton told his story to the standing-room-only crowd at the library, and he answered several questions from the audience before signing autographs.
